Religion in Americo
Clergyman Has Good Word To Say for Suburan Churches
By LOUIS CASSELS
UPI Correspondent
The Rev. Robert A. Mac
Gill is a courageous clergy
man. He dares to say a good
word about suburban
churches.
To find i.ny signs of health
and vitality in suburbia is a
very unfashionable thing to
do these days. It's getting so
you can hardly pick up a
church periodical without en
countering a jeremiad against
the "materialism," parochial
ism" and "shallowness" of
suburban Christianity.
It is a little startling, there
fore, to find the Rev. Mr.
MacGill saying boldly in the
Living Church Magazine:
"Despite the prophets of
suburban doom, the church is
still mediating Christ's salva
tion . . . even in Status
Heights. And it is doing so
remarkably well, in my
opinion."
The Rev. Mr. MacGill
served until recently as vicar
of what he describes as an
"arch-typical" suburban par
ishthe Episcopal Church of
the Nativity, Indianapolis.
Ind. He is now on the staff of
the National Council of the
Episcopal Church.
Not 'Dreary, Foolish'
He acknowledges that the
average suburban congrega
tion is far from being the
dedicated body of Christian
disciples that it ought to be.
But with all of its shortcom
ings, suburban Christianity is
not as "dreary and foolish" as
its critics paint it.
In suburbia, the Rev. Mr.
MacGill says, "The Gospel is
being proclaimed and re
ceived by men and women
who want badly to know that
there is Good News with
power to save.
"The historic creeds are
staking out blazing areas of
eternal truth for lonely, tran
sient and skeptical folk whose
uniformly college educated
minds still clamor for the few
simple certainties of life.
"The food and drink of the
Eucharist are penetrating the
lives of wordlings who know
acutely what it is to hunger
and thirst in the midst of
cocktail-a-n-d-cookout plente
ousness." Instead of scorning subur
bia as a wasteland of Pharis
aism, the Episcopal minister
says, churches should recog
nize that it "may well be the
greatest missionary challenge
to Christianity in America to
day." Learntd Two Leisom
From his own ministry In
the suburbs, the Rev. Mr.
MacGill has learned two les
sons which he commends to
all clergymen who are as
signed to this "missionary"
frontier.
The first is that "suburba
nites do not need the church
for picnics, parties and the
like . . . they have their own
resources for leisure and recreation."
SECTION C
PAGES 1 to 10
Medford
Tribune
MEDFORD. OREGON, THURSDAY. NOVEMBER 1, 1962
The effort spent in so
many churches on organized
outings and social affairs is an
essential waste." he says, be
cause it merely provides
another opportunily for hu
man relationship on an "arti
ficial level."
"What people want is the
chance to know other Chris
tians in some depth. Adult
study programs of an un
abashedly religious nature
and especially those with lay
leadership are the obvious
alternative."
The second lesson is that
"suburbanites are painfully
self-conscious Christians be
cause, despite their high level
of book-learning, they are es
sentially ignorant about the
Christian religion."
"Too often we ask a church
member to accomplish the
impossible task of being a
Christian without giving him
basic instruction in what
Christianity is all about.
Don't Know Bible
"In the transient world of
suburbia, a terrifying num
ber have never had that in
troduction. They do not know
the Bible. They don't know
why the church is as it is, and
does as it docs. And they are
ashamed and self-conscious
because they don't know."
His remedy which worked
wonders for the Church of the
Nativity at Indianapolis is
to provide adults as well as
children with systematic, ba
sic instruction in the "con
tent of the Christian faith."
To provide this instruction,
the Church of the Nativity
worked out an "unshamedly
ELECT
BY FAR THE BETTER QUALIFIED MAN
BERLE STEPHENS
Jackson County
SHERIFF
Continuous Service Since 1951 in law
Enforcement and Investigation
World War 2 Veteran
Honut Competent Cooperative
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Dorris Chinn Stephens Com , 101 Lozier Lane
iffu
old-Ia;-hiond curriculum" in
which the Bible was the prin
cipal textbook.
"Modern religious educa
tors will probably scream,"
sas the Rev. Mr. MacGill,
"but this was the moment
when these suburban Chris
tians began to lose their self,
consciousness and to become
properly conscious of holy
God.
"I am convinced that thera
is a major key to the life ot
the church in suburbia."
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